A very sleepy elephant
At Lake Manze camp in the Selous Game Reserve, there is a strange phenomenon: an elephant who loves to sleep, in camp, in the day time. He parks himself near tents, by the office, even by the dining lodge!
Affectionately named "Laygos" (we are not sure why) he is a male bull, fairly young. No-one knows why he has adopted Manze camp as his regular patch, but for sure he feels very safe there.
Elephants do not sleep much, and then only with interruptions, and the whole group in a herd basically never sleeps at the same time. Thus elephants only sleep for around 4 hours per night, and that not at a stretch either.
Elephants take short naps standing up, but lie down when sleeping for more than a couple of hours. The average elephant sleeps for approximately four hours at a time, and spends at least half of that time lying down on its side.
While elephants are herd animals, they will often choose different preferred spots for sleeping. Elephants not only sleep lying down, but there are instances where elephants can be heard snoring or kicking their feet as if dreaming. The incorrect assumption that elephants only sleep standing up is often formed when the casual observer spots an elephant taking a nap while standing.
We think Lake Manze camp is Laygos's preferred spot for sleeping!
You can book your safari for June onwards - there are some great offers too, contact reservations@ed.co.tz